Smith, Ireland elected to Piedmont school board

PIEDMONT -- Amal Smith and Doug Ireland have emerged as the winners in the Piedmont school board election held Tuesday with all six precincts reporting.

They will serve four-year terms without pay.

Smith was the top vote getter in the election with 1,879 votes followed by Ireland with 1,695 votes. The third candidate, Hari Titan, received 606 votes, with five votes for a write-in candidate. There were 897 under votes, which means some voters cast fewer votes for a particular office than they were permitted to cast.

There were six over votes, which means voters cast a vote for more candidates than the number of candidates they were permitted to vote for.

There were 1,895 vote by mail ballots cast, with 649 election day ballots cast, for a total of 2,544 ballots cast. Piedmont's total voter registration is 8,268.

The two new trustees will be sworn into their posts from 4 to 5 p.m. Feb. 26 held at Piedmont district offices, 760 Magnolia Ave. The outgoing trustees, Ray Gadbois and Roy Tolles , will be recognized for their eight years of service each to the board. The board will also reorganize to select a president, vice president and secretary. A reception will follow and the public is invited.

Ireland, an 18-year resident of Piedmont, has served on the Havens Site Council, the Piedmont Educational Foundation and the school parcel tax campaign. He has a background in finance, having worked on Wall Street for 30 years, experience critical to dealing with the district's finances.

Advertisement

His priorities include integration of technology and new Common Core standards, sustained fiscal responsibility, stability of leadership and connection to the community.

Smith, a 16-year Piedmont resident, has served on parent club boards, the Education Foundation, the school parcel tax campaign and the district's budget advisory committee, among others.

She has more than 23 years experience in higher education in financial management and operations. She has worked for the past 13 years in the Office of the President for the University of California in Oakland.

She is committed to teacher development, creative classroom strategies and technological innovations, with an eye to the long-term perspective.

Titan was advocating electronic "town hall" meetings to keep parents informed of school board actions and discussions, saying many people do not have time to view lengthy school board meetings nor read through the minutes.

Titan has worked as a "big data scientist" with a Ph.D. in computer science from University of Waterloo in Waterloo, Canada. He sought to be the catalyst for modernizing the communication platform.

Three candidates were running for three open four-year seats on the City Council, creating an uncontested election.

Teddy Gray King received the most votes with 1,696, with Tim Rood coming in second with 1,621 votes. Incumbent Jeff Wieler received 1,489 votes. There were 2,803 under votes with 14 write-in votes. There were nine over votes.

Tim Rood lost to challenger Bob McBain in the last council election by 26 votes.

Rood is a strong supporter of green initiatives and bicycles to his work as an architect and city planner. He was former board member of the Piedmont Swim Club, serves on the city's Budget Advisory and Financial Planning Committee, is co-chair of Piedmont Connect environmental group and worked on the 2013 school parcel tax campaign.

He said he will bring his expertise to the council to implement money-saving recommendations, pursue green initiatives and address the projected deficit in the city's sewer fund.

Wieler is serving a second term on the council, having served 14 years ago as well.

He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and is a retired executive from Redwood Day School.

He has served on the library and civic center committees and the Piedmont Park Commission. He stresses his institutional memory and financial background will continue to be assets, particularly with the hiring of new City Administrator Paul Benoit, who will come on board in March.

King has extensive volunteer background as well, having served on the Piedmont Park Commission and the Piedmont Recreation Commission, the Environmental Task Force and the Piedmont Neighbors and Newcomers Club.

She cited her political strengths as a legislative aide to former U.S. Rep. Lynn Woolsey, chief of staff to former San Francisco Supervisor Jose Medina and as policy analyst for a national health care organization.

She and the other two candidates said they are committed to preserving and maintaining the excellent levels of service and civic amenities that Piedmont enjoys.